The dream of winning the Lotto slipped further from the grasp of millions of punters yesterday – as it was announced that the price of a ticket is to double.

Operators Camelot claimed the increase to £2 for a single line of numbers from this autumn will help it create more winners.

The firm pointed out it is the first rise since the game was launched in 1994 and the extra revenue will mean more cash for worthy charities.

But, as usual, the people who lose out will be the poorest – the ones who need a win more than most.

Many will be forced to cut down on their weekly flutter, while others who regularly use multiple lines will struggle to keep them going – afraid that the week they stop their lucky numbers will come up.

Last night the increase brought a deluge of complaints, with more than 1,000 punters venting their fury on the National Lottery Facebook page.

Many slammed the increase as “greed” and others threatened to boycott the game.

Geordie Mick said: “It’s becoming a game for the rich. Poor people will never have a chance of bettering ourselves now.”

Pauline Leather added: “As a pensioner on a budget I can’t afford to be paying £2 a line. You’ve just lost a customer and should hang your heads in shame.”

Another disgruntled player asked: “How can they do this at a time when everyone is skint? Have they never heard of the recession?”

It is understood there are no plans so far to increase the price of £2 EuroMillions tickets. But the Lotto increase will deliver a huge windfall for the Government.

The Treasury raked in £783million last year from a little known 12% duty on all National Lottery ticket sales – and that figure will soar.

The regulator which approved the huge increase yesterday claimed it was not “unreasonable”.

A spokeswoman for the Lottery Commission said simply: “If players don’t want to pay the £2, there are other lottery games that still cost £1.”

The increase means a player who buys one line of numbers, once a week, will have to find another £52 a year.

But someone who buys two lines for both Wednesday and Saturday night draws will see their yearly outlay double to £416.

Camelot, now owned by a Canadian teachers’ pension fund, claimed the “exciting” changes were in response to market research.

It said people were demanding wanted more ways to win money and a new prize structure. As a result, from the autumn, smaller winners will be paid more.

The guaranteed amount for matching three numbers will rise from £10 to £25.

For four numbers, the figure will go up from around £60 to £100, depending on the total size of the prize pot.

The jackpot for matching all six balls will also rise from around £4.1million to £5million on a typical Saturday and from around £2.2million to £2.5million on the mid week game.

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But those in the middle – players who match five balls will lose out – as the prize drops from £1,500 to about £1,000.

And if you match five main balls and a bonus balls, your estimated win will halve from £100,000 to £50,000.

Camelot is also introducing a new Lotto raffle game which will guarantee at least 50 winners will each scoop £20,000.

The shake-up is a response to falling Lotto sales as people have either given up or switched to other National Lottery games such as EuroMillions and scratchcards.

Chief executive Andy Duncan said: “People love Lotto but they are finding it is a bit jaded and in need of rejuvenation.

"We have talked to more than 25,000 players and done more than 600 hours of research and the feedback is that they want more prizes and more ways to win.”

On the price increase, he insisted: “The vast majority of players want this change.”

The share of the ticket price for good causes will drop from 28% to 27% – but Camelot said the overall amount allocated to charities will actually rise because of increased revenue.

The Lottery generated £6.5billion in the 12 months to March last year – of which £1.8billion went to good causes.

Camelot took just over £30million for running the game – and that too is certain to go up.

Ben Bradshaw, Labour MP and member of the influential Culture, Media and Sport committee, said: “I’ve always believed the lottery should be run by a non-profit operator – and this shows why.”

Fellow committee member Jim Sheridan hit out at the plans, saying top prizes were already too high and a better way to create more winners would be to limit jackpots to £1million.

The MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire North added: “Instead of handing out ludicrously huge amounts to a few, they should look at spreading the money around to benefit more people.”